Women’s Experiences of Symptoms of Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 Illness During the Pandemic

OBJECTIVE: To explore experiences of symptoms of suspected or confirmed COVID-19 illness among women using the CovidWatcher mobile citizen science app. DESIGN: Convergent parallel mixed-methods design. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-eight self-identified women consented for follow-up after using CovidWatcher. Participants’ ages ranged from 18 to 83 years old. METHODS: We collected data via semistructured, virtual interviews and surveys: the COVID-19 Exposure and Family Impact Survey and Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System measures. We used directed content analysis to develop codes, categories, themes, and subthemes from the qualitative data and summarized survey data with descriptive statistics. RESULTS: We derived five themes related to symptom experiences: (a) Physical Symptoms, (b) Mental Health Symptoms, (c) Symptom Intensity, (d) Symptom Burden, and (e) Symptom Trajectories. Subthemes reflected more nuanced experiences of suspected or confirmed COVID-19 disease. For those without COVID-19, anxiety and mental health symptoms were still present. Of those who attested to one of the PROMIS-measured symptoms, all but one had at least mild severity in one of their reported symptoms. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates the cross-cutting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals who identify as women. Future research and clinical practice guidelines should focus on alleviating physical and mental health symptoms related to the ongoing pandemic, regardless of COVID-19 diagnosis. Furthermore, clinicians should consider how patients can use symptom reconciliation apps and tracking systems.